Back to the end of the Ming Dynasty to engage in infrastructure construction

Chapter 181 Master Zhao is a Loyal Minister

Passing by Huai'an City, Fan Yongdou went into the city to rest.

Huai'an City is the big city of Xuanfu Town, so Fan's business name naturally has a semicolon here.

The shopkeeper of the semicolon got the news, brought people with him early, and went out of the city to meet him.

"Huh? The red flag of the strong land army is hanging on the top of Huai'an City?"

As soon as Fan Yongdou arrived at the gate of the city, he saw the red flag flying over the city.

"The owner is really well-informed, and even recognized the flag of the Qiangdi Army!"

The shopkeeper flattered me first, and then said:
"The new guard in Huai'an City is called Zhao Cheng. He is a brutal man. As soon as he entered the city, he ransacked the homes of several hereditary border generals in the city. Even the former guard Yang Cang's family was almost wiped out.

Then Zhao Shoubei borrowed flowers to present Buddha, and confiscated the fields of several gentry's homes that were searched, and distributed them to the soldiers guarding the city.Now, these soldiers are loyal to Zhao Shoubei.

Zhao Shoubei planted this red flag at the top of the city. The soldiers in the city only knew that there was Zhao Shoubei, and even the imperial court didn't pay attention to it! "

The shopkeeper quietly slandered Zhao Cheng.

"This guy named Zhao, how dare you do that! He's just rebellious!"

Fan Yongdou took a slight breath.

In recent years, the majesty of the imperial court has not been revealed, and as long as the frontier generals have soldiers in their hands, they will act perversely, which is nothing.

Some people even dared to directly ignore the orders of Emperor Chongzhen, and they didn't see what the emperor could do to them.

Often the frontier generals with soldiers in their hands made mistakes, and the emperor had to appease them.

Because all parties in the imperial court were troubled, they could not tolerate the rebellion of the frontier generals, and there was no extra money and food to suppress the rebellion.

But not many are as arrogant as Zhao Cheng.

What's more, Zhao Cheng is just a small garrison officer, so he is not qualified to be arrogant!
The next moment, Fan Yongdou's eyes flickered, he looked at the shopkeeper, and said with a cold snort:

"You seem to be very dissatisfied with Zhao Shoubei? You didn't have any conflicts with the defenders, did you? As I said, if we do business, we must have a good relationship with the frontier soldiers! Although our Fan family is not afraid of anyone, the big red sedan chair carries people In this business we are doing, we still need to be friendly with all parties in order to make money."

"Small dare not!"

The shopkeeper's face was mournful.

"This powerful army is so domineering, how can the small ones dare to provoke them? It's just that, besides having soldiers in his hands, this Zhao Shoubei also has a business name called Dongfang Company.

The Dongfang Company does all kinds of business, including salt, iron, tea and food, and competes with our Fan family for profit.There are also all kinds of strange things, which have never been seen or heard.

With the support of the Huai'an defenders, the Dongfang Company expanded wantonly in Huai'an City.Now in Huai'an City, no matter it's Xiaomin or the various companies, they only know that there is Dongfang Company, and they are all willing to do business with Dongfang Company, and they don't take our Fan family seriously! "

"Oh, there is such a thing?"

Fan Yongdou shivered slightly.

He had just walked freely between the Khan of the Kingdom of Jin and the governor of Xuanfu Town, Shen Qi, and it was the time when the spring breeze was in full swing.

Unexpectedly, he was immediately hit head-on.

The Fan family name is the foundation of their existence!
Xuanfu Town is the foundation of their Fan family.

Their Fan family started their business by selling all kinds of supplies to Dajin Kingdom through Xuanfu Town.

In Huai'an City, the most important city in Xuanfu Town, he encountered a competitor, and Fan Yongdou had to take it seriously.

Without saying a word, he followed the shopkeeper into the city.

The city gate is guarded by city gate soldiers.

Fan Yongdou was used to seeing the soldiers of the frontier army, but these city gate soldiers were obviously different, they were full of energy and worked very seriously.

Moreover, none of their weapons are swords or guns, nor are they the three-eyed blunderbuss, carrying guns and the like that are common in the frontier army.

It was a kind of firecracker that he had never seen before. It looked even better than the Lumi blunderbuss, with a bayonet on the muzzle.

Fan Yongdou had heard of it in the Jin army, this is the equipment of the strong land army, the shooting distance is long, and it is extremely accurate.

It's just that they didn't expect that Zhao's surname would be so arrogant that he would assign such good equipment to the newly recruited Huai'an army.

After checking their identities, they paid the entrance fee, and they successfully entered the city.

Fan Yongdou didn't go back to his own shop, but asked the shopkeeper to go back first, and he took a follower, pretending to be an ordinary rich man, and went straight to the Dongfang shop.

In the busiest section of the city center, there are several fronts in a row that used to belong to the garrison Yangcang, but now they all hang the Dongfang business name.

Fan Yongdou looked at it from a distance, and was slightly shocked at first.

The decoration of Dongfang Company is too luxurious.

Several sects are sticking out, and the big characters are flying like dragons and phoenixes, and they are still sparkling and dazzling.

"This... what is this?" Fan Yongdou couldn't help asking.

As the Patriarch of the Fan family, he was well-informed, but he had never seen such a thing.

"Hey! This is called a lamp sign, and it's a Zhuge artifact. No wonder you haven't seen it before. In the whole world, we are the only ones who can do this." The clerk of the Dongfang Company came out with pride in his tone.

Fan Yongdou couldn't help but take a few more glances.

The location of Dongfang Company is already very good, and with these light signs, it is the most conspicuous on this street!

No matter who comes here, they will be attracted by these flashing lights at first glance, and will walk over unconsciously.

Even if the items sold in the store are the same, the business of the Dongfang store will probably be better out of thin air.

This is good stuff!
Fan Yongdou thought again.

If their Fan family's business name also used this kind of martial arts, wouldn't their business be better?
I couldn't help feeling excited.

"Brother, do you...don't know how to sell the lights?"

Fan Yongdou asked in a calm tone.

"I'm sorry, sir. Our light board is only for our own use, and we won't sell it for the time being. Besides, even if we sell it to you, you won't be able to use it. This light board needs electricity to light up." The man said.

"Electricity? This electricity, what is it?"

"Electricity, it's electricity... Hey! I can't explain it clearly to you, come in and have a look, sir."

The guys are very hospitable.

Fan Yongdou was well dressed, and even the attendants behind him were all dressed in silk. He was obviously not an ordinary rich man, but this was a big client.

According to the rules of Dongfang Company, if the buddy makes a sale, there will be a commission.

Fan Yongdou followed the buddy in.

Immediately, he was like Grandma Liu entering the Grand View Garden.

In fact, Fan Yongdou has already seen some of the new gadgets produced by Qiangdi.

For example, the Erguotou in the crystal bottle; or the round glass ball, which is called a glass ball here...

But in this store, there are obviously more good things.

Fan Yongdou listened to the staff tell the past one by one, and each one felt very strange.

Before I knew it, half a day passed.

In the end, he couldn't even take the various items he bought.

The clerk enthusiastically asked where he lived, and said that he could send a car to help him deliver his things to his house.

Fan Yongdou did some calculations, and in such a long time, he actually spent several hundred taels of silver.

This is because he was very restrained, and he didn't buy a few things that were too expensive.

He also saw that there were many well-dressed gentry and wealthy households hanging out in the store, and they all spent a lot of money.

There are also some vendors who are directly invited to the second floor to discuss large transactions...

The Oriental Company has a large shop and many employees, but it is busy and orderly.

The more Fan Yongdou looked, the more gloomy his face became.

He didn't just look at those rare things, he also looked at things such as salt, iron, tea, and grain, which are indispensable in life.

This is also the main product of the Fan family.

There are not only Dongfang merchants, but also sufficient goods, and the prices are very affordable.

The salt, as white as snow, is extremely delicate, and when you lick it, it has a salty fragrance with an aftertaste.

Then imagine that the salt sold by their Fan family is all coarse particles, and there are often some things deliberately mixed in it. If you lick it in your mouth, it will be bitter.

However, the salt of Dongfang Company is cheaper than their salt.

Even Fan Yongdou couldn't help but bought some more, ready to go back and hand it over to the cook, who will use this salt for cooking.

However, where did the Dongfang Company get the salt?

The more Fan Yongdou thought about it, the heavier his heart became.

The Dongfang Company has these goods, how can their Fan family compete with others?

Wherever the Dongfang Company goes in the future, the Fan family's company will have to wait for it to close down!

That's exactly what happened.

Fan Yongdou went to his own shop to have a look.

Huai'an City is a big city with a large population and rich families.

The business of the Fan family branch in Huai'an City has always been very good.

But when he went to see it today, there was no one there, and the guys were all yawning and fast asleep.

It's normal to think about it, with Dongfang Company here, who would come to their Fan's house to buy things?
This time, Fan Yongdou became anxious.

The foundation of their Fan family is about to be touched!

In normal commercial competition, it is impossible for them to win the Dongfang Company.

Fortunately, that Zhao man was too arrogant and rampant. He offended the Great Khan of the Kingdom of Jin, Huang Taiji, and the governor Shen Chi internally.

"Hmph! Zhao is still too young! He got the inheritance of Zhuge Wuhou and the Mo family, but he didn't know how to use it well! What a waste of money."

Fan Yongdou snorted coldly.

He couldn't compete with commercial methods, so he could only think about other methods.

These Zhuge Artifacts are so mysterious and strange, if they can be obtained by their Fan family...

Just thinking about it, Fan Yongdou felt hot and excited.

He didn't care about rest, and went back to the store, ready to pick out some gifts. He was going to visit a distinguished guest.

However, picking and picking, the more you pick, the more frustrated you become.

Think about the treasures you saw at the Dongfang Company. In comparison, the ones at the Fan Family Company are nothing worth mentioning.
In the end, he only took a few bank notes and kicked them in his arms.

They also ordered someone to book a table in the largest restaurant in Huai'an City, all delicacies from mountains and seas were fully prepared.

It was only then that I handwritten a letter and asked someone to deliver it to my door, inviting Ding Qiang, the captain of the Huaian Guard Armed Forces, to the banquet.

Fan Yongdou thought very well, but to his surprise, Ding Qiang refused directly.

This made Fan Yongdou's face darken.

He had investigated Ding Qiang, and knew that Ding Qiang was just a dilapidated military household before, and he was not well-known in Huai'an City.

Because of his courage, he took the lead to join Zhao Cheng, so he was favored by Zhao Cheng and became the captain of the armed forces.

He thought that if he, Fan Yongdou, the head of the Fan family, hosted a banquet for Ding Qiang, Ding Qiang would definitely not lose face.

Unexpectedly, the other party really rejected him.

"What a bumpkin! You don't even understand basic human relationships!"

Fan Yongdou snorted coldly.

However, now he has something to ask for from Ding Qiang, so he can only take the initiative to visit Ding Qiang.

Ding Qiang has recently been promoted and made a fortune, but after all, time is short, and he has not had time to buy a house, so he still lives in the old house before.

The wall is decayed, and the dilapidated house is leaking from all sides.

There were two soldiers standing guard at the door.

Ding Qiang's body is tied to the safety of Huai'an City, so the safety of him and his family must be guaranteed first.

Fan Yongdou sent the greeting card, and after entering the door, he looked around first, and then said sincerely:

"Captain Ding is in a high position, and it is inappropriate to still live in such a humble room. Fan has a house in the west city. If Captain Ding doesn't mind, Fan is willing to give it to you."

As soon as we met, it was a set of houses.

This can be described as very arrogant.

Ding Qiang raised his eyelids and glanced at him.

"It's not a relative, it's not a reason, Fan Yuanwai suddenly gave this general's house as a gift, I don't know what is his intention?"

"Hehe! Captain Ding, don't think too much about it. Fan is just admiring Captain Ding's demeanor. Captain Ding is already in charge of Huai'an City at a young age. It's really admirable!" Fan Yongdou exclaimed.

"In this case, I will not be polite." Ding Qiang's eyes flashed, and he nodded in agreement.

Fan Yongdou was overjoyed when he heard that.

He is not afraid of Ding Qiang's greed, but he is afraid of Ding Qiang's refusal.

Flies do not stare at unsealed eggs.

As long as Ding Qiang has a weakness, he will be half successful.

"Okay! Tomorrow, Fan will send someone to deliver the house deed. The house is not far from our Fan's business, and the location is very good. It will be more convenient for Captain Ding to be on duty in the future."

Fan Yongdou was in a good mood and couldn't help but say a few more words.

Ding Qiang took over the house, and seemed to be a bit more polite. The two praised each other, and the atmosphere was harmonious.

Fan Yongdou felt that the atmosphere was similar, he suddenly sighed, and said as if he was worried for Ding Qiang:

"Captain Ding, when Fan entered the city today, he saw a red flag floating on the top of the city, with a yellow thread embroidered on it, but he didn't see my Daming flag. I don't know why?"

"Oh, the one you mentioned! That's what the garrison ordered. He said that they are all strong people when they see this flag." Ding Qiang said casually.

"Harmful! Zhao Shoubei is harmful!"

Fan Yongdou clapped his hands and said in shock:
"Captain Ding doesn't know, Zhao Shoubei shouldn't know! Changing the flag without permission is tantamount to treason!"

"Treason?" Ding Qiang was taken aback for a moment, "No way? Mr. Zhao is a loyal minister, how could he rebel?"

Fan Yongdou was so choked that he almost had nothing to say.

As soon as Zhao Cheng entered the city, he slaughtered the whole family of the original guard Yang Cang, and killed several gentry families. How dare you call him a loyal minister?
Ding Qiang, you should have noticed it!

"The imperial court has laws and regulations, and the flag cannot be changed at will. There is also the name of the official position, which cannot be changed at will.

If Zhao Shoubei really wanted to reuse Captain Ding, he shouldn't have appointed you as such a captain, but should have made you an official of thousands of households! "

(End of this chapter)